Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Piedras Negras and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,042 a month against $1,204 in Piedras Negras, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Piedras Negras
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Piedras Negras Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Piedras Negras

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,042

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Piedras Negras and in Lima

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Piedras Negras and in Lima actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Piedras Negras versus $1,042 in Lima.

Piedras Negras $1,204
Lima $1,042

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,874 in Piedras Negras versus $1,651 in Lima.

Piedras Negras $1,874
Lima $1,651

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,544 in Piedras Negras versus $2,259 in Lima.

Piedras Negras $2,544
Lima $2,259

Living in Piedras Negras is roughly 15% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Piedras Negras 11% lower, Lima 23% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.98 MX$206

$4.64 PEN 15.95

136.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.64 MX$801

$34.34 PEN 118

24.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.46 MX$159

$7.01 PEN 24.12

20.68%

Cappuccino

$3.58 MX$67.3

$3.22 PEN 11.09

11.18%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.33 MX$25.06

$1.13 PEN 3.90

17.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.04 MX$19.55

$0.61 PEN 2.09

70.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.35 MX$44.09

$2.93 PEN 10.08

-19.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.92 MX$73.7

$4.25 PEN 14.63

-7.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 MX$30.40

$1.58 PEN 5.44

2.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.61 MX$49.02

$2.61 PEN 8.98

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.64 MX$30.71

$1.30 PEN 4.47

26.15%

Eggs

$2.51 MX$47.07

$2.92 PEN 10.05

-14.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.99 MX$150

$9.54 PEN 32.82

-16.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.43 MX$158

$5.71 PEN 19.66

47.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.13 MX$209

$9.47 PEN 32.58

17.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.74 MX$51.5

$2.01 PEN 6.91

36.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 MX$28.18

$1.02 PEN 3.52

47.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 MX$34.97

$1.45 PEN 4.99

28.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.85 MX$34.81

$1.49 PEN 5.14

24.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.87

$0.91 PEN 3.14

115.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.83 MX$34.29

$0.89 PEN 3.07

105.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$0.86 PEN 2.97

59.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 MX$19.94

$0.89 PEN 3.06

19.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.39 MX$82.4

$5.47 PEN 18.83

-19.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.39 MX$195

$10.17 PEN 35.00

2.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 MX$32.43

$1.81 PEN 6.21

-4.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.15 MX$59.2

$3.15 PEN 10.84

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.67 MX$12.52

$0.66 PEN 2.28

1.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.73 MX$558

$31.89 PEN 110

-6.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.60 MX$48.79

$3.43 PEN 11.79

-24.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.97 MX$36.95

$1.98 PEN 6.80

-0.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.94 MX$205

$9.60 PEN 33.04

13.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 MX$24.66

$1.71 PEN 5.89

-23.39%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$24.1K MX$452.3K

$21.9K PEN 75.3K

10.13%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$23.3K MX$438.3K

$29.0K PEN 100.0K

-19.64%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$56.8 MX$1,067

$65.8 PEN 227

-13.69%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$22.71 MX$426

$15.26 PEN 52.5

48.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.38 MX$552

$26.87 PEN 92.5

9.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.02 MX$601

$32.91 PEN 113

-2.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.04 MX$376

$20.12 PEN 69.2

-0.40%

Cinema Ticket

$5.04 MX$94.6

$7.12 PEN 24.49

-29.21%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$216 MX$4,061

$309 PEN 1,064

-30.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,504 MX$84.6K

$21.4K PEN 73.5K

-78.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.7 MX$1,028

$52.0 PEN 179

5.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 MX$742

$35.69 PEN 123

10.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.4 MX$1,866

$81.8 PEN 281

21.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.8 MX$1,649

$78.0 PEN 268

12.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$605 MX$11.4K

$727 PEN 2,501

-16.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$435 MX$8,165

$373 PEN 1,284

16.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,007 MX$18.9K

$1,249 PEN 4,297

-19.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$749 MX$14.1K

$739 PEN 2,544

1.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,916 MX$36.0K

$2,380 PEN 8,191

-19.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,103 MX$20.7K

$1,365 PEN 4,697

-19.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,638 MX$30.8K

$650 PEN 2,238

151.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.31

8.38

34.96%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Piedras Negras: November 3, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Piedras Negras

$435 36.1%

Lima

$373 35.8% 14.2% $62

Groceries & Markets

Piedras Negras

$261 21.7%

Lima

$228 21.9% 12.7% $33

Eating Out

Piedras Negras

$185 15.4%

Lima

$127 12.2% 31.5% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Piedras Negras

$127 10.5%

Lima

$111 10.7% 12.1% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Piedras Negras

$109 9.1%

Lima

$108 10.4% 0.9% $1

Getting Around

Piedras Negras

$45 3.7%

Lima

$48 4.6% 6.7% $3

Sport & Entertainment

Piedras Negras

$42 3.5%

Lima

$47 4.5% 12% $5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $605 in Piedras Negras and $727 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Piedras Negras pays about 2.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Piedras Negras vs $34 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $261 vs $228 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Piedras Negras

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

06:21 6:21 AM

07:21 7:21 AM

1 h ahead of Piedras Negras

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

173,959

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.09 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.87 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Piedras Negras Lima 5,190 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Piedras Negras
Lima

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Piedras Negras vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,204 in Piedras Negras and $1,042 in Lima, so Lima is about 13% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Piedras Negras is about 2.5 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $605 in Piedras Negras versus $727 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $216 in Piedras Negras versus $309 in Lima. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 15% higher in Piedras Negras. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Lima gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Lima wins on affordability, Piedras Negras on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.